Seeking A New Future
by KaoriBeniko
Summary: After two years of fighting together, the Signers finally part ways, aiming for their respective goals. When Aki and Yusei part, their relationship unresolved, how will he cope with the possibility of never seeing her again? One-Shot.


We are positioned on the main road of Neo Domino City, the setting sun in our backs. A group of six young duelists, just staring ahead, giving their plans, respectively chosen, one final thought. Marveling at the idea that they have made up their mind for themselves, decided what they want to do in the future.

Inspired by my fellow's decisions to leave this city, I stand in the center of this row we are forming, starting my engine first, to accompany them to the end of the freeway where it splits into different directions.

"Let's go, everyone! This will be our last run!", I shout, and I'm already dashing off, though soon accompanied by my friends. I can hear Jack, Crow and the twins mouthing their goals and good byes aloud, and it creates a positive vibe full of curiosity of what's to come, what new obstacles there are to overcome, what new motivations to find in these foreign areas. For a split second I wonder why Aki doesn't say anything. Then I notice her looking at me through my rearview mirror, probably deep in her own thoughts. I take it as a reassuring gesture, shaking it off, and direct my gaze back on the street. I still feels her gaze boring into my back.

A crossroad comes into sight. It's time to speed up for the last time. Just as I'm starting to accelerate, my heart starts to beat faster, as if I am one with the machine. Just now am I starting to realize that our ways, after fighting alongside each other for almost two years, will ultimately part. The fights we fought together, the memories we made, all of this will come to an end at this point. A strange sensation washes over me, rushing through my veins, along with a surge of adrenaline. It settles deep in my stomach and my D-Wheel screeches abruptly to an halt. I raise my hand and await my friends. Like in a trance, or a slow motion, I can see them, the now former Signers, racing towards me. Jack. Crow. Rua. Ruka. Aki. The spark of the unsettling feeling takes over my insides.

A short laugh of excitement escapes me, full of happiness for my friends, happiness about the fact that our task is over, and we can go wherever we want. I'm glad that everyone has found their goals, each of them aiming for something different. My laugh subsides to a convinced grin when I find Jack giving me the first high-five of the group, shooting me a challenging stare. Next up is Crow, who grins confidently, just like me. Rua and Ruka follow closely after another, giggling in the process, elated to escape their once lonely lives. At last, I feel Aki's delicate hand against my own. Her bright eyes shine in the sunlight, though her expression is unreadable. So becomes my own.

Our ways will part forever from now on. I'm okay with that. I want my friends to be happy. This city is my home, though. The place where everything started, where it comes to an end. I belong here. And even though Neo Domino City is finally at peace now, I have a strange feeling that I am left to be responsible for it. There is a lot left to do here, after all.

The group rushes past me in a frenzy, each person taking a different road. It's a metaphor, really.

The roads are empty today. I keep my position in the middle of the highway for another moment, slowly dropping my hand. I still follow the others with my gaze, until everyone has vanished from my sight. As the minutes go by, I have to comprehend that none of them will return soon, if ever. Jack and Crow, mainly Rua, they will find their ways as professional duelists, most likely to return for maybe a few days in between competitions. But until then, it will probably take months or years to hear from any of them. Aki will be constantly positioned in Europe for several years. I will learn to cope with that. However, as I support her decision and find it to be a wonderful development since our first meeting, when she was not only repellent, but unsure where to belong, I can't do anything to tune out that uncomfortable feeling in my stomach, which I am eventually able to find a name for: _regret. _

Beside all the thoughts recently devoted to the others, there is one memory playing constantly in my head, again and again that I can't seem to neglect. A memory that can be summed up in one sentence.

"_Yusei, I have always loved-" … I love that I've met you, Yusei."_

She had come to say her goodbye, and she did. But there is an irritable intuition that we didn't fully solve the situation. At least I can say for myself that there is one thing I kept quiet about. And maybe, we had a mutual understanding about what it was. Maybe her hesitation was an indication for this. I can't quite fathom when I will be able to shake off this uneasiness. The absolute perception that I have wasted an opportunity.

All this dwelling won't do me any good, damn it. It's too late now. Just five minutes ago, I could have done something. _Anything_. What, I'm not sure of. Even if I had had the chance today, had she, say, asked me to have a word with her, for whatever reason, I wouldn't have had the guts to tell her that I didn't want her to leave. Who am I to talk her into something she just decided she didn't want, although my duel against Jack was what manifested her dream in the first place? _Exactly_, I scold myself. I sigh deeply. I have to get out of here. Already, this place bears the memory of my friends leaving. I am well aware that I sound like a little kid, even to my own ears.

But as I head back towards the city center again, feeling the sharp wind ruffle my hair, letting fresh air fill my lungs, I begin to feel left alone. That's what it is. I know that I will never forget the bounds that we founded, neither will Jack, Crow, Aki, or the twins, but as they strive to find happiness somewhere else, finding something new in the path alone, I am the only one to stay here. I love the city, and it's not like there isn't anyone left to return to. But at the same time, this is not what I have wished for, exactly.

When I arrive at Poppo Time, my inevitable home, I carefully park my D-Wheel in the garage and hurry upstairs. I arrive in the residential area, and the anxiety is still there, it's hitting me full force. I guess the adrenaline rush has managed to drown some of it out, though I have felt it since our departure.

It won't let go of my insides, let alone my heart. It keeps my heart in its grip, downright ripping at it mercilessly, as if trying to force me into changing what I wasn't able to resolve.

Eventually, the turmoil inside makes me sick, and I have to try my best not to throw up in this instant. Just what the hell am I supposed to do? There is nothing left for me to, aside from waiting and finding something to engage in. Actually, I vaguely remember to have chosen this place for myself too, but strangely enough, at this very moment, I can't even remember what I wanted my task to be here. I know it has been there, I wanted to operate on the Momentum, I guess … I also wanted to protect the city, right? I just can't think straight at the moment, suddenly I'm too exhausted to do anything. My legs won't support my weight anymore and I sink down onto the sofa at the wall, finding at least something familiar in this place. Even if I have forgotten my own goals, I know for sure that it was not moping around my apartment like a pathetic person. However, I can't seem to care just for a moment. I'm a mess. This is too stressful.

I wake up with a start, gaping at the blank ceiling. I must have dozed off for about a few hours, since I can see the dark sky from the corner of my eye. I can see it clearly, the near black night, though there are a few streaks of light flashing through the window. There is also a soft rumbling sound in the distance, which I soon identify as rain. It is soothing to my ears, and my early uneasiness subsides. I attempt to move my head further towards the window, but my body is paralyzed from sleep. I must have slept quite soundly, it seems. So I stare at the ceiling for a few minutes, making an effort to shake off the dream I just had. A beautiful woman standing several feet across from me, surrounded by a wild storm of rose petals, which has displaced the whole furniture of a spacious sickroom. Amber eyes looking straight through me.

The same eyes, wearing the same desperate expression. A single tear creeping down from under a damaged mask. Just short fragments of memories, creating an overall picture of the woman I have fallen in love with years ago. I can't stand seeing those, I don't want to become desperate for something long gone. In another attempt to break away from my sleeping position, and rest altogether, I'm finally able to sit up slowly. My limbs feel numb, as does my heart.

It's been just a few hours of heartache, but I don't want to risk succumbing to this. I don't have time to linger on the past, when the past few weeks were all about finding the future. _Practice what you preach_, I tell myself. But then I remember the countless duels with Aki and ask myself again, in what ways I might have inspired her, what kinds of influence I may have had on her. Keeping in mind that I begin to act like a lovesick fool, I strive towards the window, clasping its frame with my hands. In my desperation, I squeeze my eyes shut and lean my forehead against the cool window, willing the rain to drown my pathetic loneliness. The glass is cool against my skin, and though I try to keep myself together, I can't help but grip the wood harder, scratching it with my nails, to let go of this helpless situation, to relieve this stress. This desperation I'm just not used to. Why the hell couldn't I say a single thing? Standing here evaluating, I could as well have messed it up, and it wouldn't have mattered, because Aki wasn't planning on returning for the next few years. I grit my teeth together and a deep growl escapes me. What do I mean to her? _What was it that she wanted to say originally that night? _I don't want to know my impact on her life for my own satisfaction, because it sure as hell was my intention to help her that day at the hospital … at the Fortune Cup … I just can't help but ask myself if she will remember me … what picture of me? Under what circumstances? Why can't I know? My breath is hot in my irritation, creating mist against the window with every breath. I involuntarily look at my reflection. At least I still looking normal, kind of. A bit tired maybe, just one or two suspicious little streaks that could be mistaken as dried tears, … from my nap, presumably. But far from the broken weakling I am beginning to feel like.

Even so, I have to go out of here. I have barely been in here for a nap, but I already feel as if I'm caught in a cage. I just can't breathe in here. It makes me miserable. Though I feel slightly worn out and hungry, I merely grab my helmet from the backrest and descend to the garage. Of course, it is still empty, aside from my D-Wheel which seems to be intact. I can't wait to go for another ride, especially in the rain, which is always a welcome change.

I move to the garage door to unlock it, and when it's finally wide open, I stop dead in my tracks. I can't believe my eyes. There, standing right before me, in the shelter of the roof overhang, stands a suspiciously attractive, female, figure that I would recognize anywhere.

My heart skips a beat. I feel the blood drain from my face. _"What is she doing here?"_ The question is burning in my head with a weird intensity, my heart aching yet again, willing my arms to stretch out to her, to allow my hands to embrace her slim body, pressing her to me, keeping her safe with me. Thousands of impressions consume my senses the moment I recognize her face. It's almost sinister, her effect on me.

Her head moves in my direction, apparently not expecting my appearance, and her warm eyes look at me rather panicked. "Yusei...", she mutters unsteadily.

I want to do something, at least think straight, and in spite of my panic, I try my best to appear collected and calm. Whatever her motivations might be to come here, if doubt or fear or worse, some kind of incident, I somehow muster the strength to wipe any traces of my excitement from my appearance. It's better not getting my hopes up, anyway. I'm not to make her stay.

However, what I can't hide are my feelings for her. Protectiveness. Fascination. They are brimming inside of me, lingering on my tongue, about to spill over, to ultimately escape my mouth. "I've missed you", I want to scream. I want to scream anything. I wish she knew what she is doing to me right now.

My body won't move the second time this night as I'm too perplexed to register anything except her startled expression and her sweet, delicate, and primarily, shivering hands. She absolutely looks as if I caught her somehow. It certainly is odd, seeing her so insecure. "Aki", is all I can muster after a few silent minutes. I'm too transfixed in her stunning, and I daresay, _sexy_ appearance, to say anything else. I'm bound to her gaze, completely lost in her amber eyes. They are as perplexed as mine, more than anything, but at the same time kind of … hopeful?

Somewhere in between my jumbled thoughts, I manage to step aside numbly, beckoning her inside.

"Aki," I finally press out, "what can I do for you?" yea, this might come across a bit indifferent. She looks at me then, wonder minting her features. "I, uh … I'm sorry, I don't even - ...", she starts, fumbling with her hands a bit. I observe her taking a deep breath, presumably to calm down. What reason is there to be nervous? A few strands of rich hair fall into her face at the motion. I want to brush them away, grazing her cheek, maybe, but I remain quiet and observant as she pushes them behind her ear herself. As she closes her eyes, then turning to me again, her expression is clear, her position more confident.

And suddenly I find myself in a tight embrace. Before I can marvel further at the simplest of her gestures, she has wrapped her slender arms around my torso, nuzzling her head against my neck. Just another act to catch me off guard tonight. Any thoughts evaporate in a heartbeat. All I can see is Aki, initiating the hug that I have longed for, nestling to me, saying nothing. I can't see her face, can't read anything. But I feel an odd peace taking me in, which has me ease into her arms rather than repelling her with my rigidness. I don't feel like asking questions anymore. I have never longed for anything but this. There is a sweet scent around her, definitely flowery, though far subtler than roses. A whiff of leather, too, due to her riding suit, which is unusual for her, but just as familiar. I fully secure my own arms around her soft figure, carefully cradling her head. She's just so warm, so comfortable to hold.

I remember the day I found her at the hospital when she was in a coma, so long ago … When I brushed a tear off her cheek, when I swore to myself to catch her, to wipe away her sorrows whenever necessary. To hold her like this one day. No words needed. Except for maybe from her now, what kind of sorrow it is that she wants to have erased by this. I absently graze her hair with my nose.

"What is this feeling, Yusei," she whispers meekly, her words muffled by my shirt "that I can do anything with you ..?" I'm caught off guard at her honesty. My cheeks heat up a little, but it's far from uncomfortable. I revel in the way she relaxes against me, the way her curves fit perfectly against my form. I know exactly what kind of feeling she means, I feel it in this very moment. But what exactly does it imply? I know that I want to hold her like this forever. Though, too soon, the curiosity gets the better of me. I don't want to have any space between us, but I need to see her face now, to identify her reasons to be here. I carefully touch her arms, unfastening them just a bit. My hands slide up her arms until they rest on her upper arms. Her gaze is full of emotions foreign to me. Or rather, it is beyond comprehensible that it is me she looks at in this way. Her orbs hold an intensity that make me weak in the knees, and they are directed at me without a trace of embarrassment. She looks almost pained, and I realize that it's _longing_ that I see before me. It's a wonderful sight, whichI can't take.

_What is she doing here?_ I have thought that we had figured things out, ending up separating. Hence, I have to figure out the meaning of this. An unfamiliar pressure forms, stinging my eyes uncomfortably. I keep staring at her, trying to make sense of all this, just barely noticing that there are tears forming in my eyes. Pathetic, I would have scolded myself just an hour ago, but I have already met the possibility that Aki is suggesting that she wants to be with me. I see her eyes widen, tinted with empathy, as she wipes away a single wet streak running down my marked cheek. Her touch makes me shudder. "Aki, I … please. What are you doing here?" I whisper, afraid that my once strong voice will fail me, "You have to tell me. Soon. Because otherwise I'm afraid that I won't be able to say goodbye to you again", I confess meekly, casting my eyes down. I'm weak. Just now did I try to keep my composure for her, and now she has broken me already, with merely one sentence and a squeeze. I'm too vulnerable around her. I wonder if she even recognizes me anymore. She is still looking at me with that brimming emotion in her eyes, I'm feeling it, and after a few minutes I don't even expect an answer anymore, when she speaks up at last.

"All these years. From the very first day I saw you, I know I was falling in love with you, Yusei,"

her voice breaks at her own revelation, leaving me helpless around her and she apparently struggles to find it again. So do I. The excitement gushes out of my heart again, my blood flow is speeding up. "I don't know how to say it, I just know it's there. I aspired to become a Turbo Duelist to understand your feelings, to be near you. I was always thankful to you, always will be. At the same time I wanted to become stronger for you, to show that I wasn't depending on anyone. So that not only you, but also my parents, and the others - … would see that I was willing to change for the better. I wanted to show, how much you mean to me. So, now that our task is over, now that there is no mark to connect our destinies anymore, why would we part?", Aki takes a deep breath, not daring to look at me, I assume. It's alright with me, for I'm completely blown away by her confession. I don't know how to cope with all of this. I just … "And if there is one of the two of us with an option, it's me. We're still young, you know? I do want to study, I really want to become a doctor one day, but I could as well study here, couldn't I? It's a long education anyway, I know that I will find a way to go abroad to study further, to improve as a doctor. I just couldn't stand the thought of never seeing you again, Yusei, because that's what the departure felt like. I wouldn't know when to return." with each word she speaks, I feel another layer of stress peel away. So we did share the same feeling. The impression from before, her unreadable look. It was indecision. "Yusei, I have decided that." a short pause followed by a faint kind of sobbing which makes me want to hug her again, "I want to stay with you. In Neo Domino." my breath hitches. The words I had wanted her to say all along. The words I have been too craven to say, because I trusted her own decision. I had thought of it as egoistical. Ultimately, I'm speechless. I can see uneasiness form in Aki's eyes, that are finally focused on me again. After all, I still haven't make my own confession. And even now, I don't know how to show her how much I want this, though at the same time, I feel guilt rushing through me, because she is basically willing to compromise her future.

In a helpless surge of emotions, I pull her to me, my left hand resting on her cheek, and I press my lips against hers in an attempt to drown the disarray of disbelief, happiness, and the undying feeling that I don't deserve any of this. I can't let go of the precious creature in my arms, feeling her soft skin against my fingers, and I can't detain a low groan when I feel that she's kissing me back. We desperately cling to each other, kissing each other caught up in a frenzy, at one point even starting to tug at each other's clothes without care. Her lips are so soft, so good against my own, that I start to believe that this is meant to be, as corny as it sounds. It feels so right being with her. "Yusei-" she starts to whimper in between kisses, but I replace her soft moans with my mouth, taking them in, inhaling her intriguing scent. Aki's arms enclose around my neck, bringing me even closer. It's more than I can take.

We manage to let go of each other at some point, still embracing each other by the neck, breathing heavily. I give her a soft kiss on the temple, then rest my forehead against hers. I have to close my eyes to process all of this for a moment, and when I find the courage to look at her, she is still vibrant, no traces of doubt visible. A beautiful smile lights up her face even more. A smile that I will be able to protect from now on.

We stand here, in this otherwise abandoned garage, rain pouring in the distance, no trace of light aside from the faint moonlight, no other sound disturbing our new found happiness. It's still kind of ridiculous, but just by her presence at my side, this place starts to feel like home again. And there I find these words, finally bubbling up from my very being. "Aki," I whisper, willing her with my gaze alone to see what she is to me.

"Be with me."


End file.
